It all started when I was doing research on independent micro-brand watch companies around the world. I have experienced with some of them and all the offerings that I got the opportunity to get did not disappoint me one little bit. From the US, I am familiar with Deep Blue, Lum-Tec and Ocean7; from Singapore its Gruppo Gamma and from Luxembourg, Schroeder 1877. I then stumble on a micro-brand that hails from a country North of mine, Thailand.
This micro-brand is called Maranez Watches. Its website, http://www.maranez.com/ is very vague to its origins. Based on some reviews I found on the internet, it would appear that it is a company operating out of Phuket, Thailand based on the names of their watch collection that are main points of attraction in Phuket (Layan, Bangla & Rancha). However, this is still debatable as the address that was printed on the courier docket was from a Hong Kong office. Anyway, here is the contact detail of the company if anyone is interested: maranezwatches@gmail.com.
In 11 April 2014, there were only the Bangla and Rancha models available for sale. However, what got me interested was the fact that this company works with three different materials, stainless steel, brass and titanium. As it so happens my brother's birthday was coming up, I decided to order a Bangla in brass (for him) and a Bangla in titanium for myself. The price was just USD299 + USD50 via FedEx for the brass and USD349 + USD50 via FedEx for the titanium. More about the price later.